Online summer courses prove popular

Micah Black has a lot she wants to do this summer. From fun in the sun to cozy nights in with a book, she definitely has a lot of leisure time on her agenda.

Micah Black has a lot she wants to do this summer. From fun in thesunto cozy nights in with a book, she definitely has a lot of leisure time on her agenda.

However, there is also a “must-do” on the slate: French class.

Black, a senior in political science at Pittsburg State University, said being able to take a summer course in French online allows her to combine her “must-do” with her “want-to.”

“Having the option to take the class online is great because I can work on my own time and it leaves my schedule open for the other things I want to do this summer,” she said.

Black is one of more than 1,400 PSU students taking advantage of the university’s online summer offerings, an increase of more than 200 students over 2012 numbers.

With online courses becoming increasingly popular nationwide, Pitt State continues to add to its offering each year.

“Our online program grows every year, and it’s quickly become one of the most popular options for our students,” Lynette Olson, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said. “We have a lot of students who go back home for the summer to work, and our online offerings allow them to take PSU courses from familiar PSU faculty.”

Summer courses continue to grow in popularity among undergraduate and graduate students at Pittsburg State. According to the PSU registrar’s offices, preliminary enrollment numbers show an increase of approximately 150 students over last year’s numbers.

“One of the main benefits for our current students is that it allows them to jump ahead a little bit in terms of meeting their completion requirements for attaining their degrees,” she said. “It allows them to accelerate their program.”

Catherine Geiger, sophomore biology major, is taking a microbiology course this summer. She said she enjoys summer courses because they help her focus.

“There are a lot of benefits to taking a summer course, but one of the main ones for me is that you can focus on this one class without distractions,” she said.